章 69: A (almost) fatal yet comprehensive power up
His question?
'What do I want to know?'
Since arriving to retrieve the Relic of Knowledge, Adam had contemplated this countless times. Questions would form in his mind, only to be dismissed as he reasoned that he could uncover those same answers by himself.
And, in fact…. he didn't need to delve too deeply into this internal query.
Jinn could only answer questions pertaining to Remnant, limiting her capabilities. Armed with this knowledge, the scope of 'seeking answers' narrowed. Instead of pondering 'What do I want to know?', Adam now faced the question, 'What is it about Remnant am I most curious about?'
Adam scrutinized Jinn, who waited curiously for his question. His mouth opened, and words spilled out without a second thought.
"In this world, what is each and every way to become stronger?"
As the words left his lips, the blue spirit before him wore an astonished expression. Her lips curled up, eyes glowing with amusement.
She chuckled softly, the glow in her eyes getting more intense "Ah, seeking to enhance your strengths. I can certainly provide guidance on honing your skills and unlocking hidden potentials. But remember, true strength often comes from within."
Saying that, her eyes met with his golden orbs as she made eye contact with him-
"Hrn-!"
The silver-haired boy groaned, teeth gritted, grasping his head in pain. Countless pieces of knowledge and information flowing into his mind.
The origin of magic, the brother gods gifting it to humanity, the underlying principles of magic, the rules that bind and limit it….
Aura, the manifestation of the soul, the projection of the soul's outer layer into the real world as a shield, the creation of the semblance, the process which the first human who awakened his Aura all by himself went through
There was also information about changing oneself. Biologically modifying oneself to become a sort of Grimm- Human abomination, or making cybernetic enhancement into one's body
And… the strength of the spirit, the strength of one own's character, the willpower, and the determination to extract strength from from within to overcome adversaries.
"Adam! Are you okay?!"
A crisp shout filled with worry reached him. Through his blurry vision, he saw Rimuru in front of him, holding him steadily and preventing him from collapsing to the ground
"Oh... I see"
[Assisting with the integration of transferred knowledge....]
As large amounts of knowledge poured into his brain all at once. Adam tried to stabilize the situation with the help of Psionics and [Great Sage], and though it did lighten the burden, his head was still in pain. The size of information that the Jinn directly transferred to his brain is too vast- too overwhelming for someone whose mind is still in the confines of 'mortals'
"Great Sage-san! Help Adam!"
[Notice: Borrowing the processing power of individual Rimuru Tempest's unique skill]
And suddenly, with the slime girl's voice intervening.... His brain snapped as the process became far easier, completely integrating with the knowledge gradually and storing it in his brain
"Haah"
Adam exhaled slightly as he massaged his temples, a dull ache still persisting on his head. In fact, he was very fatigued from that experience, and he was still feeling the after-effects as his brain continued processing the information he received in the background
It reminded him of his experience when he first tried to analyze the travel card of the Chat Room.... If it hadn't been for his code and [Great Sage], he would have died at that time
"Are you okay now?" A concerned voice sounded from beside him
Looking at the source of the voice, he found Rimuru looking at him with worried eyes, a concerned expression marring her face as she slightly examined his body
Pushing himself upwards and standing straight on his own without the blue-haired girl's help, he looked at her, trying to remain strong
"I'm fine"
Reassuring her, he turned his gaze to the cause of that experience
"You...."
The silver-haired boy glared at the smiling Jinn in front of him, who was looking at him with an innocent expression
In fact... If he were a normal human without a code, [Great sage], or Psionics, he would surely have died
The best-case scenario for him would be to become brain-dead, transforming into a vegetable
"Adam.... Should we use [Gluttony] on her?" Came the slightly cold voice of his dear friend from beside him.
It was a surprise hearing the normally cheerful and peaceful Rimuru with this tone, though, there was also faint killing intent being exuded from her, but he wasn't sure if his senses were lying to him after that experience
"We should" Agreeing with her, Adam raised his hand in preparation
"Are you preparing to do something malicious to me?" Tilting her head, the blue spirit asked without any concern in her voice, her expression becoming neutral once again
"You wanted knowledge regarding every way to become stronger in this world" She shrugged her shoulders innocently "You weren't specific, so I gave you all the knowledge of obtaining more power in Remnant that I had access to"
Now that made him frown and halt his current action of devouring her
"I'm surprised you processed all that information smoothly, though" She continued with a voice of intrigue
"You don't need me anymore. Punish me for my actions if you must, but I simply answered your query" She shook her head, blankly staring at him, not worried at all whether he would decide to kill her or punish her in another way
... He indeed doesn't need this spirit anymore. And although the way she imparted that knowledge was fatal.... It was legit, and it gave him all the knowledge regarding the powers of Remnant, whether that was magic, Aura, exercise or even modifying the body and becoming some sort of MANTIS, only with Grimm instead of honkai beasts
"Haah..." Sighing, Adam contemplated on what to do with this spirit
He won't leave Jinn alone here, because if she falls into someone else's hands.... Well, in short, he has to punish her for her actions
"Tell me" The silver-haired boy started as he looked at the spirit intensely "Do you want to explore other worlds? Do you want to obtain the knowledge of something outside Remnant?"
"Adam...?" Rimuru looked at him with a curious look, wondering about his change in attitude
They were now just planning to devour Jinn as payment for the suffering she imparted upon Adam, but now she was surprised that he changed his mind
He looked at the slime girl "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing"
[Transferring knowledge....]
Feeling the knowledge gradually seeping into her head, the slime girl understood why her companion didn't outright kill the blue spirit
"Alright" After seeing her nod at his reassurance, he turned his gaze back at the spirit
"I do!" Jinn replied positively with a barely hidden look of excitement
"Very well"
After her affirmation, the whole dimension glowed in a bright golden light. Adam's Aura flared outwards as a magical circle appeared beneath his feet
Similarly, the spirit opposite of him also glowed in an azure Aura. A somewhat different magic circle appearing beneath the lamp from which she manifested from
The silver-haired boy brought his hand up to his chest, clenching it into a fist
"Now... You will become my slave, and in exchange, you'll be able to travel with me to other worlds, do you agree?"
He declared while looking at her with narrowed glowing golden eyes. His voice oozing seriousness, carrying an indescribable gravity as his face remained expressionless.
"...." Jinn's face turned thoughtful for a moment, before instantly changing as she came to a decision
"This lamp is your property from now on" The spirit performed an exaggerated bow, her unhesitating voice echoing throughout the whole dimension as she agreed
"Very well then"
Receiving her affirmation, Adam initiated the Master-servant contract
From the magical circle, golden lines of corruption spread to the whole lamp, enveloping it in a disgustingly yet beautiful golden embrace of pure subjugation
As the spirit of knowledge was recalled back to the relic, the silver-haired boy waved his hand
FOOOOSH
The air of this dimension was distorted as the lamp flew towards him, landing safely in his awaiting palm
Grasping the Relic of Knowledge in his hands, Adam's eyes flashed for a moment, the lamp magically changing at a speed visible to the naked eye
"Nice"
Bringing the lamp upwards, he examined the appearance of the now-transformed Relic of Knowledge
"Rimuru, what do you think?"
He asked his friend who was watching the entire process with an interested gaze
At his words, the slime girl tilted her head, examining the Lamp with a critical gaze
The Relic of knowledge had changed completely from its previous form. Except from being smaller in size, its color also changed dramatically
Now, the previously blue orb of this Lamp has transformed completely into a Royal golden color, while the previously golden outer shell has become glistening silver
"It reminds me... of you?" Rimuru blinked as she felt the aura radiating off the Relic, noticing that she felt Adam's aura and presence in this new lamp
"Obviously" The silver-haired boy rolled his eyes at her words "I've enslaved Jinn with a Master-servant contract, and I've also corrupted this Relic. You can say it completely belongs to me now"
"Well... It's more beautiful than before!" The slime genuinely replied as she followed up her previous words after hearing Adam's explanation
"..... Though, Are you sure you can trust her?" She continued, asking him with doubt in her voice "Bringing a spirit, who had the intention to kill you, to another world is a bit..."
She didn't continue her words, she didn't need to. After all, with their link, he could feel the concern and curiosity of the slime girl
"She agreed to become my slave without any hesitation" Adam pursed his lips "Such determination for knowledge... I feel like I can get along with her.... Even though she is considered my slave"
Jinn's thirst for knowledge reminded the silver-haired boy of himself... As even though he wouldn't make the same choice, the spirit's sacrifice of freedom still moved him. And besides, she didn't want to kill him, she just gave him the knowledge that he asked for- if he died because of that, then it's not her fault
Although….. The silver-haired boy was still somewhat mad at the blue spirit for this dirty move of hers, she didn't warn him, and she was gambling on his mental fortitude for whether he would survive!
"I see!" Rimuru nodded, going back to her previous cheerful self
Since he was sure of his choice, the slime girl wouldn't doubt him. As his friend, she will support him in every decision he makes
"Uh....." The blue-haired girl spoke up "What about Rias-san?"
Rimuru looked at the frozen-in-time red-haired devil, noticing that she didn't return to normal after the Spirit was recalled back to the lamp
Adam put his hand under his chin as he looked at Rias, who was still frozen in her previous spot
"What to do with her indeed....."
...
..
.
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A/N:
Fun fact: English isn't my main language.
Nothing else, I just wanted to get this out there.
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